A letter from Orra White Hitchcock to her children in which she writes about how she imagines the Amherst College commencement went and that she longs to hear more about it. She admits that she has not ventured onto the streets of London much in the past few days and expects that her children would take greater advantage of the experience of travel and she hopes that someday they will have the opportunity, at an age when they are not "so nearly worn out" as she and their father are. She describes her experience at the meeting of the British Association for the Advancement of Science in Edinburgh, which she enjoyed more than she expected, and notes that she attended all of the public meetings and heard many of the papers. She comments on the notable scientists she saw much of at the meeting, including David Brewster, Sir Roderick Murchison, Professor [Robert] Jameson, and Dr. [Gideon] Mantell. Orra also inquires about things at home and remarks that both she and Edward are cheered by the prospect of returning home, although they dread the voyage across the ocean and "try to feel that the same Almighty power is able to carry" them back safely.

Public Domain: This material has been identified as being free of known restrictions under copyright law, including all related and neighboring rights. While Amherst College Archives & Special Collections claims no rights or authority over this material, we do ask that any publication or use of this material cite the Archives & Special Collections at Amherst College as the source of the images and the repository where the original documents can be found.